Create more easy-to-recycle, customized cushioning products with TPU
Shifting to more sustainable cushioning
Polyurethane has long been a trusted material for creating comfortable, durable foams for mattresses and other cushion products. As sustainability becomes increasingly important, thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) presents a new, additional option in the market. Covestro’s Desmopan® AIR technology is one TPU-based solution, providing the same high standards of quality and comfort as traditional foams, while offering enhanced recyclability.
Designed to enable more recyclable cushioning
With Desmopan® AIR, we introduce a new class of customized TPU-based cushioning solutions. Because it can be recycled via simple thermo-mechanical processing, Desmopan® AIR can help manufacturers to create high-quality cushion products that are more sustainable.
TPU-based cushioning structures can also be combined with other TPU applications such as TPU artificial leather or non-woven materials. These monomaterial solutions are inherently easier to recycle than products consisting of multiple polymers.
In line with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), this material helps to enable more eco-friendly product design, fo ster responsible production and consumption, and contribute to a more circular economy.
“Desmopan® AIR can be processed by using multiple extrusion heads, ensuring high production speed, high resolution, while providing excellent cushioning performance. The high-speed process and low setup costs make it a fully scalable manufacturing solution, enabling mass production of customized cushioning products with outstanding efficiency and performance.”
Using new parallel-layered manufacturing technology to turn Desmopan® AIR into cushioning structures
Desmopan® AIR TPU granules are turned into layers of breathable, washable cushioning products using a new extrusion-based process called parallel-layered manufacturing.
Crucially, despite this being a new process, it is scalable: the required investment in production equipment is relatively low, and production can be local and on demand. It also generates minimal production waste and requires minimal chemical handling during production.
“Desmopan® AIR is a great solution for industrial production of customized cushionings, due to its excellent elasticity, toughness, and manufacturing stability. It is cost-effective and provides key benefits such as good washability, fire resistance, recyclability, and low VOC emissions.”
A high-quality, high-performance material for advanced cushioning applications
Besides reducing products’ life cycle impacts and ensuring end-of-life recyclability, Desmopan® AIR offers several additional performance advantages for manufacturers and consumers across a wide range of cushioning applications.
Compared to traditional cushioning materials, Desmopan® AIR ensures breathability and good washing resistance, meeting high standards of hygiene and comfort. These qualities make it particularly useful for applications such as hospital mattresses, hotel mattresses, pet bedding, seating, and cushioning structures for bags and accessories.
Desmopan® AIR also offers the possibility of hassle-free customization, enabling manufacturers to design products depending on the user’s weight, height, or other individual requirements. Through the parallel-layered manufacturing process, you can create locally zoned properties with a large variability of hardness. The process also produces products with low flammability.
Key benefits
- Fully recyclable: Can be recycled via simple thermo-mechanical processing
- Hygienic: Ideal for applications where washability and cleanliness is top priority
- Comfortable: High-quality material with enhanced breathability
- Customizable: Extrusion process can create variable zones of hardness
